I reign supreme in the Western fantasy world for eternity.

As evening fell, the setting sun bathed the windows of Viscount Pompeii's mansion in a warm orange hue.

In Elena's room, the maid had already left and was standing guard outside the door. She stood in front of the dressing mirror and changed into the dress that Ji Tian had "casually picked out".

It was a deep sea blue long dress, with a neat and conservative cut that didn't show any ostentation, but only exuded a touch of noble and restrained gentleness in the shadows.

The dress was fitted at the waist, highlighting her slender waistline, and the skirt flowed out like water, revealing glimpses of her satin shoes as she walked.

She straightened her hair in front of the silver mirror, then turned and walked to the next room.

Ji Tian had already changed into a dark suit that Elena had specially made for him at some point. The suit fit him perfectly, making his originally slightly thin figure appear tall and straight.

He was adjusting his cuffs when he heard the noise, so he looked up and his gaze lingered on her for a moment.

Elena's soft, gentle voice came through, "Is it pretty?"

"nice."

She waited a moment, and when she confirmed there was no further news, she smiled helplessly, stepped forward, and reached out to straighten his tie. "Let's go, Father and the others are waiting."

……

The Viscount's carriage left the city gates along the main street of the capital and headed towards the Prime Minister's estate in the suburbs.

As dusk settled, the fields on both sides of the official road slowly receded outside the carriage window. In the distance, the lights of the manor had already been lit. When the carriage stopped at the manor gate, a long queue had already formed in front of it, with noble carriages one after another, and guards respectfully guiding them from the front.

The Viscount and his wife walked ahead, with Ji Tian helping Elena out of the car, followed by several personal servants. The group walked down the red-carpeted stone steps toward the banquet hall entrance.

Two waiters in tailcoats stood at the door, bowing respectfully. The moment the door was pushed open, warm yellow light and voices poured out.

The banquet hall was enormous, and many people had already gathered inside. The men were dressed in dark suits, while the women wore long dresses of various colors, and their jewelry refracted a delicate light under the lamplight.

As Ji Tian and his entourage entered the banquet hall, their gazes naturally swept over them.

Elena's deep sea blue dress wasn't particularly flashy in the crowd, but the cut and color perfectly accentuated her youthful and vibrant charm.

Most of the nobles' gazes lingered on her for a moment, then fell on Ji Tian beside her, before they politely nodded in greeting and looked away.

The viscount had been operating in the capital for many years and had many acquaintances. As soon as he entered, people came up to greet him and exchange pleasantries. The viscountess was also quickly pulled aside by several ladies to talk.

Elena, linking her arm with Ji Tian's, looked at his slightly puzzled expression and asked, somewhat confused, "What's wrong?"

Ji Tian, ​​who was well-versed in many online novels, shook his head. "It's nothing. I was just wondering if some powerful and influential nobleman would suddenly appear and mock me, and then I would slap him in the face."

"Pfft... What are you thinking about?" Elena chuckled lightly, then whispered, "Most of those in the capital are old nobles, whose titles were earned through the strength of their ancestors. They still need to maintain basic courtesy to each other. No one would lower themselves to make things difficult for a young person who has been brought here in public. As for those wealthy merchants, they wouldn't dare to provoke nobles."

"Besides, even if they wanted to cause trouble, they wouldn't do it at the Prime Minister's dinner. From what I understand, they'd probably use more insidious methods that wouldn't get their hands dirty. For example—"

Ji Tian turned his head to look at Elena, who seemed somewhat embarrassed to speak, "Like what?"

"For example, they might send someone to feign friendship with you, then take you to secret, shady meetings when you lower your guard, in order to gather leverage over you."

"For example, hiring some orc children and having them hug your legs and call you father in public. As everyone knows, it's difficult to detect the biological father of an orc through modern magic. This would ruin your reputation..."

"Of course, this was just a common trick from six years ago. I wonder if there are any new tricks now."

Ji Tian was greatly shocked after hearing this. He thought to himself that the nobles were very cunning, while his divine sense silently spread out and covered the entire banquet hall.

There were more people in the hall than he had expected: nobles, merchants, clergy, scholars from academies... gathered in twos and threes, talking in hushed tones.

His divine sense, like invisible tentacles, captured every fragment of the conversation while also sensing the magical fluctuations of everyone present.

The strongest magical fluctuations came from the innermost part of the hall. There stood an elderly man dressed in a red robe, with a golden holy emblem hanging on his chest. He had a thin face and a calm gaze.

His magical energy fluctuations were steady and profound, faintly revealing the magical energy fluctuations of a Grand Magister. He also possessed a sacred artifact, emitting a soft halo, which should be of a defensive nature.

"Tsk, it's not a good idea to perform a full soul search and then use time rewind to go back in time."

The vice dean of the academy stood on the other side, clearly following the basic rule of "no kings meeting kings". He was dressed in a dark blue scholar's robe, with gray hair and a gentle face. His magical energy fluctuations were also at the level of a Grand Magister, only slightly weaker than that of a Cardinal.

Ji Tian's divine sense continued to spread, and he soon noticed a young man called "Your Highness" standing in the area surrounded by people in the hall. He was about twenty years old, handsome, wearing a formal dress embroidered with the royal crest, and had a proper smile on his lips.

Several attendants stood beside him, one of whom, a seemingly ordinary middle-aged man, possessed magical energy fluctuations at the level of a Grand Magister, and was likely a secret guard sent by the royal family to protect the prince.

Beside the prince was a young woman, dressed in a pale gold dress and wearing a small pearl crown. Her features resembled those of the eldest prince, so she must be a princess.

The prince was chatting and laughing with several nobles; the princess stood a little further away, holding a glass of champagne, looking around the crowd in the hall with a bored expression.

Elena pulled Ji Tian back to a pillar on the side of the hall, took two glasses of juice from a waiter's tray, and handed him one. "Actually, the dinner party isn't that troublesome for us young people. It's just dancing and chatting. You don't have to bother with people you don't want to talk to."

Ji Tian then listened as Elena introduced the people present: Cardinal Valentine of the Royal Cathedral; Theodore Sterling, Vice Dean of the Royal Magic Academy; Crown Prince Victor; Princess Sonia…

Ji Tian suddenly remembered that the name of this prince was very similar to that of the senior student who had "brought warmth" to him when he first entered the outer academy, but the surname, identity and aura were too different, so he didn't think much of it.

"Over there—" Elena's voice rang out with a hint of surprise, "Among the group surrounding the Prime Minister, there's someone I don't recognize. Look, it's the one in the dark blue dress with gray hair."

Ji Tian focused his consciousness on the past.

Prime Minister Augustus stood in the eastern part of the hall, surrounded by nobles and wealthy merchants, introducing an elderly man with gray hair to those around him.

The old man was dressed in a well-tailored dark blue suit with a silver badge pinned to his chest. The badge was engraved with a pattern of gears and flames, like a symbol of some profession.

"...Your improved steam loom has already been adopted by three factories in the North. Its efficiency is more than ten times that of traditional looms," a merchant-looking man said solicitously.

The old man waved his hand, his tone calm yet tinged with undisguised pride, "That was just the first step. I recently improved the power transmission device, which can reduce losses by 30%. Once the new batch of machines goes into production, the cost can be reduced even further."

"You are truly a once-in-a-century genius!"

"Not at all, it's all thanks to the Prime Minister's support, who provided me with ample funding and facilities."

Ji Tian's brow twitched slightly.

An improved steam textile machine?